Mount Toubkal and the High Atlas

Mount Toubkal, About 4,167 M, The Highest Peak In North Africa And In The Arab World, Inside Toubkal National Park; The Standard Ascent Starts At Imlil And A Licensed Mountain Guide Is Required · Imlil, Marrakesh-Safi

Mount Toubkal, about 4,167 m, is the highest summit in North Africa and in the Arab world, and it rises only about 65 km south of Marrakesh, which is why a city of palm trees and 38-degree afternoons sits within sight of snow for half the year. The trailhead is Imlil, a Berber village at the head of the Mizane valley and the logistics centre for the whole massif: licensed guides, mules, porters, kit hire and village guesthouses. The standard ascent takes two days, walking from Imlil to the refuges at roughly 3,200 m and starting before dawn for the summit. In summer it is a long, relentless walk on scree rather than a climb; from roughly November to April it is a genuine mountaineering day needing crampons, an ice axe and the skill to use them. Around the peak lie walnut groves, irrigated terraces, mule tracks between villages, the Ourika valley, and the ski ground and prehistoric rock carvings of Oukaimeden. The honest caveats: altitude defeats more people than fitness does, a licensed mountain guide is required, and this is working country where people live hard.

Imlil trailhead at the head of the Mizane valley, about 65 km south of Marrakesh; the summit lies roughly 11 km further south inside Toubkal National Park, Imlil, Marrakesh-Safi, Morocco

The mountains have no gates and no opening hours, and the trails from Imlil are walkable in daylight all year, but the season governs everything. From roughly May to October the summit is a walk for fit hikers; from roughly November to April it is a winter mountaineering route and parties without crampons, an ice axe and the experience to use them should not start. The two refuges below the summit at roughly 3,200 m are staffed and sleeping places must be booked ahead, especially at weekends, over Easter and through the Moroccan holiday weeks; they reopened on 1 October 2023 after the earthquake that September. A licensed mountain guide is required for the ascent and is arranged in Imlil, usually through your guesthouse or the village guides' office, ideally a day or more in advance. Getting there: grand taxis run from Marrakesh through Asni to Imlil in roughly an hour and a half to two hours, leaving when full and drying up by early afternoon; private transfers run to order. There is no public bus into the valley. Confirm refuge availability, guide booking and the state of your specific route.

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